


The Human

by randomwriter57



Series: Reigisa Week 2014 [3]
Category: Free!
Genre: Fluff, Implied Angst, Kinda, M/M, Maybe - Freeform, Mermen, i don't know how to tag, i don't think i actually implied a relationship but??, it's for reigisa week so, merpenguin, reigisa week day three
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-17
Updated: 2014-06-17
Packaged: 2018-02-05 01:02:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,127
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1799725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/randomwriter57/pseuds/randomwriter57
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was only as my head broke the water surface that I saw him.<br/>The human.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Human

**Author's Note:**

> Written for day three of Reigisa Week - Prompt: Mermen

It was only as my head broke the water surface that I saw him.

The _human_.

Since I came to the south of the Falklands, I had never seen a single human – most of them lived further up north, and whilst there weren’t many, I still preferred the quiet of the south – so to see a human on the shore, squatting in front of a dark block of some description, was quite a surprise.

I could barely make him out for all the clothes he wore – layer after layer of jackets, scarves and gloves which covered almost every visible part of his body. All I could see was a sweep of bright blue, partially hidden under a black hat, and two blocks of red directly underneath this.

At first, I didn’t really know what to do. Part of me wanted to flee, to duck underwater and swim away as fast as possible. The other part wanted to move closer, to get a better look at the human and maybe even _talk_ to him.

It was an opportunity I couldn’t miss.

I did take caution, of course. I didn’t want him to see me too soon, so I swam a few metres beneath the surface, being careful not to miss the edge of it. Once I reached that edge, I surfaced, peeking over it at the human.

Up close, I could see that the red blocks had clear rectangles in the middle, so they were only frames of red. I wondered why the human had these – the other humans I’d seen hadn’t had anything like that on their faces. He had dark eyebrows, which were almost hidden by the red as he frowned. He was still twiddling with the black box, probably having trouble with it. I could only watch in awe, observing as he pressed some buttons and stood, picking up the box. Then he began to walk towards the edge.

I didn’t even realise until he was right in front of me.

“A person?” he said quietly, but just loudly enough for me to hear him. His voice was a little hoarse, but rather deep and smooth. It was nice. “What are you doing in the water? It’s freezing out here!”

I froze, staring at him. He obviously thought I was a human too, which made sense – everything from my chest up looked just like a human’s top-half, and he could only see my head.

The human squatted in front of me. “Are you lost?”

I didn’t answer immediately. A few weeks ago, I would have answered, _yes, I am lost_. I had only just arrived here, washed up by a storm that had taken me by surprise when I had been feeding with my family. I didn’t know where I was, or how to get home, so I made my own home here in the hopes that my family would find me. Now, this place _was_ my home – I wasn’t lost any more.

I shook my head.

The man seemed happy that I had answered his question. He asked another. “Do you live nearby?”

I found this easier to answer – it was obvious, wasn’t it? Nobody else lived within miles of this place.

I nodded.

“Do you need me to take you to your home?”

I frowned and shook my head. I was already at home.

The human frowned as well. His eyes (which, behind the red blocks, were a beautiful shade of purple) held confusion in them. He opened his mouth as though to say something, before changing his mind and closing it again. It took a few more minutes for him to speak once more. “My name is Rei.” He held out a hand to me.

I stared at him for a moment. _Rei_. It suited him. Then I realised he probably wanted me to answer him. “Nagisa,” I said, extending my own hand to fit in his. His hand was larger compared to mine, but my nails were longer and sharper. The human – Rei – seemed to notice this.

“My, what sharp nails you have.” He tightened his grip and shook my hand before letting it go. I was confused by the gesture, but did not question it. Humans had strange habits. “It’s nice to meet you, Nagisa.”

Hearing my name in his voice was quite nice, I had to admit. Maybe it was just because I hadn’t talked to anyone in weeks, or because this was a human and I’d never talked to one before, but I liked it.

I remained by the edge for a while after that, answering his questions and listening to his stories, sometimes chipping in with some of my own. He explained his contraptions to me, explained that he was researching marine life in the area. I asked if that made him a scientist, and he answered that in a way, yes he was.

My mother had told me stories about scientists – humans who, if they caught you, would trap you in a glass box and dissect you, as though you were just another fish – expendable. She and my father made sure neither my siblings nor I would ever trust a scientist, but I couldn’t help but believe that Rei wasn’t like them. He was kind, trustworthy. I liked him.

After a few hours, the dusk twilight began to settle. It was getting late – I needed to get back to my cave.

I told Rei to move back. “I need to get back home.”

Once he had moved, I jumped onto the ledge in my usual fashion, standing easily. I turned back to Rei, noticing his reaction.

His mouth was agape, his eyes wide as he stared at my dark, feather-clad legs and pink, clawed feet He looked at me as though I had three heads – though I suppose I may as well have done. Humans don’t think merpeople exist, so to see a merpenguin in front of their very eyes must be quite a shocking experience.

I looked up at him and noticed how much taller he was compared to me – there was quite a distance between he and I, in height terms.

“You’re…part penguin?” he stuttered out, after minutes of silence.

I grinned at him, not needing to answer verbally. I merely winked, turning and moving quickly towards my nesting site.

Even hours after the encounter, I still had Rei on my mind. _Maybe_ _I’ll talk to him again tomorrow_ , I thought as I drifted off _. I’d like that very much._

I fell asleep to images of purple eyes and blue hair.

After that day, I never did talk to Rei again. He was gone by the next morning.

It’s not like I could talk to him, anyway. Not from inside a glass cage.


End file.
